New Scarves now on sale at Liberty

We are very pleased to announce that our scarves are now in Liberty of London, just in time for London Fashion Week so pop in if you can or visit our website for a closer look Jocelyn Warner

Flora Midnight

I have been wanting to translate some of my wallpaper designs into scarves for a long time and now I have finally been able to do it. The Letter scarf I designed some 25 years ago, which proves I’m now possibly vintage !!

In those days I hand printed them myself in my print studio and was lucky enough to sell to Paul Smith, Joseph and Bergdorf Goodman, although I really love screen printing it’s great to have them digitally printed this time round.

Made in the UK, we should be proud

September 20th 2011

At the moment its very much about having a look that ignites a mood, the resurgence of wallpaper way back in 2000 has made it the catalyst for the pattern boom we are seeing today it started on the walls and has spread right across fashion to furniture to ceramics. People are more connected to pattern now in this country, which means they can more easily digest and relate to it in their homes.

Jocelyn Warner Wallpaper Wisteria Silver Blue

Flowers and plants of all sorts are still really powerful in print, they offer a form of beauty that with the right colourway and printing process can create a mood of tranquility and calm even if the repeat size is on the larger scale. I think ( from a designers point of view) that scanners, digital photography / digital printing has revolutionized the way we look at nature “enlarged” and “close up” dissecting images into pixelated abstracts; very much like when photography first hit the art scene when you had photographers such as Karl Blossfeldt taking purposely styled studies of plants. It made people look up close at texture and form, the same has happened now with designers using new technology, you get the chance to get in close to you subjects and this means you can form a closer relationship, generating a different mood.

The colour and tone you can alter at a click of the mouse has revolutionised design and I think the wallpaper and print we see now on the high street possesses some of the finest design and print qualities for a long time. Considering most of these are designed and manufactured in the UK we should be very proud.

Two of our new papers, ‘Dandy’ and ‘Lace’ have been produced using surface printing, one of the oldest methods around and the one that most closely resembles block printing – the favourite method of William Morris. Surface printing leaves a wonderful hand painterly feel to the paper, adding a richness and depth which can’t be achieved by any other form of production.

Dandy

Lace

For ‘Wisteria’, another new addition to the wallpapers, we are using gravure, another of my favourite printing techniques. It enables us to create a look which is simlutaneously hand-painted and photographic. Clever stuff!

Wisteria

Colour themes for ‘Dandy’, ‘Lace’ and ‘Wisteria’ follow trend directions, think eclectic lemony yellows, turquoise and pinks, shadowy tones for blacks, silver and relaxing blues and a luxurious gun metals. We look forward to showing you more in the next few weeks.

Design*Sponge interview

March 17th 2011

I’m excited to say that the lovely online design magazine Design*Sponge has just published an interview with me as part of the ‘What’s in your toolbox?’ series. This is a peek behind-the-scenes, giving readers an insight into the likes and inspirations of a particular designers. Click here to read my contribution

The visual treats of Spitalfields

February 11th 2011

Reading the paper a couple of days ago I came across a story about Spitalfields, the area in which our studio is based. Yesterday saw the opening of the first Spitalfields Life photo show dotted across 3 local venues (The Golden Heart in Commercial St, Agnes B and Rough Trade East on Dray Walk), which includes portraits by Jeremy Freedman of the personalities behind the weekly antiques market.

An update from Paris

February 1st 2011

Sorry I’ve not been blogging for a little while but I’ve been v.v.v. busy launching our new fabric rangeat Maison & Objetlast week and then coming down with a nasty cold. So I have only just re-surfaced and been able to look through our pictures of the event.

This was our first time exhibiting at Éditeurs, a key part of the show. As you may may know, Maison & Objet is huge. Using all 8 of the exhibition halls at Paris Nord Villepinte, it caters for every type of buyer from wallpaper, table tops, bed linens, furniture, accessories to artificial flowers and stuffed polar bears… yup there were 2 at the show amongst stuffed penguins and owls (remember taxidermy is a growing trend after all!)

I wanted our stand to have a ‘one off ‘ sort of feel, more like an eclectic retail store than the flat walls of the normal exhibition spaces. We managed to make the table out of some beautiful mahogany wood that was salvaged from a science lab (still had the holes for the Bunsen burners!) which we put onto a pair of old builders’ trestle legs, with a shelf underneath for rolls of wallpaper and storage for the fabric and wallpaper books.

I got some hazel wood ladders made so that we could hang the wallpapers in roll form on each step…

…and managed to find a scaffolding rack on wheels from a flea market that lent itself very well for displaying and draping fabric over:

Also from same flea market I found some lovely old wooden fruit crates, which were perfect for storing the newspapers we’d had printed for the show. We then had the beautiful vintage sofa upholstered in Flora Graphic and the mid-century chair in Treetops Blue placed along the sides with the Bloom rug bringing colour to the floor as the final touch.

We got some great feedback with many people commenting on the “calmness”, “softness”, “soulfulness” and “uniqueness” of the work and that showing it in this way had helped them to interpret the designs on more a personal level. Which was great as that’s exactly what we wanted to get across: something timeless mixed with modern creating a unique look! Hope you like the photos. If you came to see us, thanks so much and thanks also to Design Sponge for the article!

Maison et Objet

January 13th 2011

We’re just getting everything ready for our show at Maison et Objet in Paris next week. It’s our first time exhibiting their and we’re are really excited about it. Especially because we’re launching our new fabric range, based around our more popular wallpapers.

In the run up to the show we put together a little newspaper as a giveaway at our stand – more about this next week when we blog from the event itself. For now, here’s a peek, hot off the press:

Famous in France

November 22nd 2010

We’ve just received our copy of ‘Papiers Peints, le langage des murs’, a lavish new coffee table book written by Genevieve Brunet. It has a particularly ‘French chic’ take contemporary wallpaper and features our ‘Leaf’ pattern in grey, turquoise and black-gold, as well as profile of the company in the section ‘La nouvelle vague. Classic with a twist’. If your French is up to scratch, it’s worth buying a copy

'Papiers Peints' published by Editions de la Martinière

A spread from 'Papiers Peints' with 'Leaf' and wise words from Emile Zola!

The work of Peggy Angus

September 13th 2010

Eric Ravilious’ ‘Furlongs’, a wonderful painting of his friend Peggy Angus’ house revived my interest in her work, which I hadn’t seen since my student days at Camberwell when we were introduced to lino cutting and mono prints. Her house featured in ‘Furlongs’ was often full with artist friends such as Ravilious, Edward Bawden and John Piper to name but a few. It was just down the road from the Omega group’s Charleston Farmhouse and although apparently the two groups didn’t mix it’s amazing to think of that many artists within a 5-mile proximity, both exploring the South Downs as inspiration for work.

Peggy Angus’ work explored the repeating tile pattern. Using potato and lino, she made designs that combined modernity with traditional methods, the results were both beautifully simplistic and yet current in shape and form.

Peggy Angus, Ceramic Tile Design, 1950s

A student with Ravilious and Edward Bawden at the Royal College of Art, she was influenced by her tutor Paul Nash who encouraged to explore a range of techniques such as lino and wood engraving. I would recommend looking at Peggy’s tile designs many of which were designed for new schools during the 50’s. It’s also worth noting that working with Carter’s of Poole, she developed a new process of silkscreen printing onto tiles.

Peggy Angus, Ceramic Tile Design 1951

Peggy Angus also produced bespoke, hand printed wallpapers, which were printed with lino blocks onto wallpaper lining paper using household emulsion paint (which, by the way, is still a really cheap and quick way of making a print! I have done this in the past for my Leaf and Lily wallpapers). She won Sanderson’s competition to mark the company’s centenary both Cole & Son and the Wall Paper Manufacturers Ltd bought her. Ideally though, Angus preferred to produce her own work as she felt that the art of making and the effects that the “hand” made were irreplaceable.

Sadly, her Camden studio and house, which was adorned in her wallpapers and prints, were pulled down by the council. It would have made a wonderful public research and reference library, something that is lacking in the textile world. Instead, there is plenty of information at Middlesex University’s Museum of Domestic Design & Architecture.

It’s especially fascinating to see the early photogravure papers that were introduced in 1923, way before they became standard in the industry. Sanderson really pushed the boundaries of this technique. The exhibition includes some fine examples of papers that have gravure metallised canvas grounds, which were then surface printed with water-based emulsions. Another paper that shows the range of textured gravure grounds is from 1926 by Harry Watkins Wild – a beautiful peacock print. Look out for it as it hangs in the entrance hall on the way into the exhibition.

There are also some interesting interviews with people significant to Sanderson’s history. Pat Albeck discusses her design Sunflowers that has been re-launched. It was first produced for one of my all time favourite collections, the Palladio, but I think this design really stands the test of time and still looks fresh and contemporary. Elsewhere in the film Albert Riva, Sanderson’s Italian agent who grew up understanding and appreciating the collection and took over from his father in the 1960s, talks with affection about the company.

Accompanying the 150th anniversary celebrations is ‘Sanderson. The Essence of English Decoration’ by Mary Schoeser. She is an authority on textiles and wallpaper and her beautifully illustrated book is a must if you’d like a more detailed look at the company’s history and developments.

'The Essence of English Decoration', by Mary Schoeser

CFA Voysey, William Morris, Picasso, John Piper, Lucienne Day, Norman Hartnel… ‘Very Sanderson’ celebrates a roll call of amazing designers and artists invited over the years to combine innovation with timelessness. Long may it continue!

Walls Are Talking

March 3rd 2010

Wallpaper, Art and Culture. 6th February – 3rd May 2010

Popped up to Manchester for the ‘Walls are Talking’ private view at the Whitworth Art Gallery. Outside of London, it has the UK’s largest collection of wallpapers and as it’s the first exhibition to bring together artists’ working with wallpaper, it’s definitely worth seeing.

As I am a huge fan of Thomas Demand it was great to have another chance to see his Ivy wallpaper hung in a vast space, although it did seem to be have little less impact than it had had at the Serpentine in 2006. I wondered if this was partly down to the enormous height of the Whitworth’s ceilings and also due to not including those large photographs that it was shown with at the Serpentine space, which made the room of ivy look like it had windows. What unnerves about this paper is the sense of being confined and constricted by the dense ivy, which is perhaps how it was supposed to make you feel. The feeling is strengthened knowing that Demand’s inspiration for the ivy pattern came from a series of photographs of a tavern; a site that had been the scene for a horrific child murder, killed by its mother and step- sister.

Another gruesome murder scene is enacted in Abigail Lane’s ‘Bloody Wallpaper’ where bloodstain hand prints of the murder victim on a plain cream background are on show. But on a lighter note! I also liked Catherine Bertola’s 3D-esque installations, they reminded me of Katsuyo Kamo’s paper cut outs for Chanel. She used soot from her fire to print or stamp the floral images, which were then cut out with some floating down the walls, very Alice in wonderland !

Catherine Bertola, Whitworth Walls Are Talking 2010

Her work was perhaps (for me) the most inspiring for pushing the boundaries and for leaving you with some kind of emotional sense. By using paper in a different way than just the flat she leads nicely towards Tracy Kendal’s work. I did wonder why she (Tracy) wasn’t included in this section as her work is a fine example of 3D art wallpaper and crosses the boundaries of art and designer very nicely. And there were other surprising omissions not just individuals but a whole era.

I know this exhibition focuses mainly on the 1970s onwards but it did seem a shame that there wasn’t a reference to the 40’s – 50’s period. For example the Coles and Sons wallpapers by leading artists such as Graham Sutherland, John Aldridge and Edward Bawden and Bowden’s again a little earlier for the Curwen Press. I had always thought that this was quite a good time for the cross over of artists working in wallpaper and of course more predominantly fabrics.

What ‘Walls are Talking’ says is that wallpaper isn’t just decorative but can be a medium for social commentary. It certainly is a thought-provoking exhibition, exploring themes of sexuality gender, race, war, outside in, chemical warfare, politics to mention a few with artists such as Andy Warhol, Damien Hirst, Michael Craig-Martin and Angus Fairhurst using wallpaper to make bold artistic statements. Sarah Lucas’ ‘Tits in Space’ always makes me smile with its cigarettes neatly arranged into compact, pert cones!

This is definitely a thought provoking exhibition and very enjoyable, there were some pieces that were more pictures rather than wallpaper; especially the ones that were canvas stretched over frames, perhaps these could have been bigger pieces so that the effect could have been felt more. But that is what opens up the discussions on ‘when does a wallpaper become a work of art?’ The majority of the papers on show weren’t made for residential use making it a very interesting take on the wallpaper today issues.

Spring / Summer 2011

February 15th 2010

Premiere Vision Feb 2010

Colours

As always there was an abundance of poetical verse to describe the trends and colours for S/S 2011 at PV and Indigo this week ‘colourful jellies’ ‘satirical pastels’, ‘languorous tone on tones’, ‘ limpid sea waters’, ‘ fresh skin tones’, ‘brilliant monochromes’ ‘mysterious abyss’ and ‘synthetic lights’ to mention but a few!

For me this year the colours that tooted my bells were a small selection in contrast with the huge palette available on the fashion agenda. I will try and match some to pantone references and some to our wallpapers, some may vary from the actual as I’m matching them with own ‘my’ eye chart!

Blues and greens fitted into the Aquatic and Limpid seawater themes ranging from the stronger turquoise to pale transient blues.

Turquoise

Jocelyn Warner Wallpaper, Leaf Turquoise Gold

Pantone 15-4715 to a darker Pantone 16-5123

Soft paler blues

Jocelyn Warner Wallpaper, Treetops Sky Blue

Pantone 14-4307 and very pale Pantone 12-4304

I would also include in the blue theme the strong trend for blue ink tones and washes starting from ink black / navy to very pale light blue. ‘Luminous darkness’ included Navy, khakis and pale aquas.

Indigo seems to see an increasing amount of textile designers offering vintage collections, antique, contemporary swatches, clothes and accessories mixed with the current fashion trends. Some of the prints and dresses are quite stunning, items that you would not be able to get from your local jumble or charity shop. I can see the attraction as the trend for nostalgia and the ‘yesteryear’ is so strong.

Shape the future

January 23rd 2010

In 1957, Stanley Coren and Tristram Hull set up Hull Trader’s, a company to promote ‘new ideas, good design and sound workmanship’. It became part of what was more like a movement that supported the creativity and production processes of designers, artists and craftsmen, rather than simply exploiting “design” in the commercial way we see so often now.

This year, Heal’s celebrates its bicentenary. During the early part of the last century, the store’s mission had a similar honesty and integrity to Hull Trader’s’ and I think this legacy of really nurturing and championing good design is something it could revisit in a big way. Plans seem afoot to do so with furniture but by delving into it’s amazing archive of fabric and wallpaper prints there’s a real opportunity. Similarly, although it was Cath Kidston who made retro florals desirable again, Laura Ashley has a wealth of vintage designs, and not just flowery prints, locked away, which could be tapped into, brought out and up-to-date, enabling them to take the world by storm again. Adopting this approach has really helped brands like Liberty and Sanderson’s reinvigorate themselves and it’s exciting to see. Back in 2004, Charlotte Abrahams in her article ‘Morris dance’ wrote this about a then-floundering Sanderson’s, “…here is our cry: face the challenge… You are sitting on one of the most exciting decorative archives in the world. All it needs is a bit of rethink (a colour update here, a change of scale there) and we’ll all come running.” They did and it worked. If you were a design-led company once, it’s worth reminding yourself of exactly that and a good way of doing this is to look back into your history and find inspiration in the design archive. All it takes is a bit of bravery but within their own treasure troves, these companies could find the key to a brighter future.

Craft Luxe

October 30th 2009

For a while, I’ve been pondering the renewal in interest of hand-made, artisan goods. It’s a trend that has filtered down into everyday life, including food. But reading recently that Hermés is continuing to thrive during these economically challenging times, and Goyard just opening a store in London, again made me wonder about issues of craft, quality and desirability at the top end of the market.

In the mind of the consumer, genuinely luxurious goods are increasingly perceived as such through the knowledge they have been carefully hand-crafted, with a great deal of time and dedication by only a small number of individuals and in limited quantities. With this process comes an inherent one-offness, a quirk, difference or personalisation that the next piece from the same workshop won’t have. And it’s this resulting combination of uniqueness and subtlety is what distinguishes them as ‘luxe’.

The hospitality business and network Rough Luxe sums up the current mood and goes a step further; “Rough Luxe… is a new way of looking at luxury as part of time and not just as an object of consumption. Luxury should be an enriching personal experience and not simply the ownership or utilisation of an expensive object.”

THE ROUGH LUXE HOTEL LONDON

In my own industry there are a number of companies that are offering hand-painted papers and interior products. Others are re-creating the hand-made feel using machine and digital prints. It’s great that new technologies mean that quality and beauty are more widely available but there is an enduring respect and desire for craft.